1. Field of the Application
This application relates to the field of enclosures for electrical components, and more particularly, to a method of making an enclosure for various telecommunications equipment by a thermoforming process.
2. Description of the Related Art
The New York City Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications (DoITT) is responsible for granting and administering all telecommunications franchises for New York City. A franchise is a contract entered into by the City with a private entity for the provision of a public service utilizing the City's streets and other rights of way. Telecommunications franchises allow for the installation and maintenance of wire, cable, optical fiber, conduit, antennas and other structures on, over and under the City's streets to facilitate the transmission of video, voice, and data.
DoITT has approved specifications and requirements for these electrical components which must be followed by the franchises. One requirement for an enclosure for telecommunications equipment is that the enclosure be made in a very specific size with specific shapes and details.
It would be beneficial in some applications for these enclosures to be made of a radio-frequency (RF) transparent material, such as plastic or fiberglass, so an antenna could be placed within the enclosure. Plastic parts are typically either injection molded or thermoformed. Thermoforming is the preferred process, due to significantly reduced expense, but the design required by DoITT requires the production of overlapping joints or transitions. These conditions are difficult to achieve without very specific and unique detailing of the cabinet interior. Thus, there is a need to provide a process for constructing these plastic enclosures.
These as well as other aspects and advantages will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading the following detailed description, with reference where appropriate to the accompanying drawings. Further, it should be understood that the embodiments described in this summary and elsewhere are intended to illustrate the invention by way of example only.